Chanel

Classic Smokey Eyes | Day 3 With the Honest Beauty Get It Together Eyeshadow Palette

February 25th, 2021 by Karen 5 Comments

The Honest Beauty eyeshadow palette comes with a card with four looks you can do with the palette. I followed the one called “Classic Smoky Eye” for this post, although with one tweak. I started by buffing the matte beige shade (Vanilla’d Velvet) all over my lids as a base so the subsequent colors would pop a little more.

I was a wee bit nervous about using the shimmery gold all over my lids and the shimmery dark purple on the outer corner because…I’m in my 40s now, and shine doesn’t always play well with my 40-something skin, particularly in the crease. Some may even say that I’m “overly picky about shimmery finishes,” *ahem*. Can you blame me though? One false move and you see every fine line!

Buuuut, I decided to go for it anyway, hoping that the matte beige underneath would tone down the shine, and it did!

As I was blending, I realized another reason to love this palette. The more you buff and swirl these shadows, the less intensely they shine, until they have more of a satiny finish. The finish ends up as a soft, pearly glow, which makes this classic smokey eye very workable for daytime wear! When I dropped Connor off at school this morning, I didn’t feel like I was wearing “too much.”

Oh, I’ve been meaning to tell you — I found the most beautiful cream blush by Chanel! It’s Les Beiges Blush No. 20, a stick blush, $45 (!), but dang, lady! It’s so good. It’s a bronzy, peachy tan with the finest flecks of pearly gold, and it adds a hint of natural-looking color to cheeks. I love how easy it is to blend and that I can’t see it sitting on top of my skin or in my pores.

If you’re a real stickler for blush that doesn’t heavy on your cheeks, then you might want to consider it because it’s so natural-looking on skin.

FYI, if you’re lighter than I am, No. 20 will probably function more as a straight-up bronzer on your skin, and if you’re darker, then you might better off with one of Chanel’s brighter cream blushes like No. 21 or No. 22, since I’m betting No. 20 won’t show up as readily on darker skin.

Other things I’ve been into lately: mixing two shades of Honest Beauty liquid lipstick, namely Passion and Off Duty, to create the purrfect mid-toned coral pink; and wearing an old-school standby base combination with MAC Face and Body (I mix C4 and C5), set with the tiniest smidgen of MAC Mineralize Skinfinish Natural Powder (my shade is Medium Golden).

Seriously, why did I ever take a break from wearing Face and Body? IT’S SO GOOD, especially for no-makeup makeup. I’ve talked about it ad nauseam on MBB for years, so if you’re relatively new here and want to know more about why it’s the stuff, hit me up in the comments and I will repeat myself once again, LOL! LOVE IT.

Oh, my gosh, one last thing before I leave you — have you seen the Britney Spears documentary on Hulu? I kept hearing about it, and I told myself, “OK, I’ll give this 10 minutes of my life, and that’s it,” but then I started watching it and I COULD. NOT. LOOK. AWAY.

The one-hour documentary by The New York Times charts Britney’s rise to fame, her very public issues in the press in the early 2000s, and the conservatorship that was placed on her in 2008, which some people believe was against her will. Some conspiracy theorists go so far as to think that her Instagram is an entire series of coded cries for help.

As you might know, I’m solidly on #TeamBritney, and so watching the doc left me with the hope that one day she’ll surprise us all (in the best possible, emotionally healthy way).

To Britney and all my ladies out there currently holding on, make that delicious lemonade out of those lemons, mama. You hang in there!

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

Check In With Your Makeup-Loving Friends…

January 27th, 2021 by Karen 24 Comments

super ridiculous — Sunscreen and bare skin…in yet another picture that I probably shouldn’t be sharing on the Internet, hahaha!

Check in with your makeup-loving friends, because, chances are they’re wearing very little makeup, or no makeup at all, LOL!

If I had a dollar for every time I’ve had a conversation over the past few months with a makeup-loving friend or a bonafide beauty buddy that included the phrase, “I really haven’t been wearing any makeup lately.”

Seems like everyone I know who normally loves painting their face is currently primarily sticking to sunscreen and a smile these days, and that includes yours truly.

I’m sitting here writing this post completely bare-faced, and ya know what? I’m cool with it, even though not wearing a lot of makeup has made coming up with ideas for Makeup and Beauty Blog posts…more challenging. (Side note: MBB turns 14 years old this February! OMG!)

The last full face of makeup I wore was about a week ago. It was a 15-minute variation of this matte brown eye look with coral-pink cheeks (MAC Warm Soul Blush) and lips (Honest Beauty Happiness Liquid Lipstick).

k honest beauty happiness jan 2021 — Gray hair, don’t care

I also busted out a long-time foundation favorite of mine that I haven’t used in a while, MAC Face and Body, a.k.a. LOVE OF MY LIFE.

I’ve been OBSESSED with this liquid foundation for years, and using it last week reminded me why! Whenever I drift away from it and temporarily land on a different product, it usually looks heavy or obvious. But MAC Face and Body always comes through. It has the perfect amount of sheer, natural-looking coverage, and it’s so lightweight that I can’t even feel it.

I think it looks particularly fetching with a touch of MAC Mineralize Skinfinish powder dusted on top…

Let it be known that I haven’t entirely stopped wearing a full-face of makeup. 😀 I still like to wear a little, like very scaled-down eyes with just a brow pencil, mascara and liner.

Lately, my liner of choice has been a dependable workhorse — one of the skinny waterproof Chanel twist-up pencils from the Stylo Yeux line. I’ve been all about Blackwood, which is a rich matte dark brown that’s great for tightlining, but I also love good ol’ Noir Intense and Espresso.

chanel stylo yeux swatches noir intense espresso black wood — Chanel Stylo Yeux faves

So, friend, where are you right now on the makeup continuum? What have you been wearing as of late?

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

This Matte Brown Classic Eye Makeup Goes With Everything

January 20th, 2021 by Karen 7 Comments

eyeshadow breakdown eye makeup goes with everything — This is an easy, everyday classic eye look.

If I were cruelly forced to select a tiny handful of eye makeup looks to wear for ~~the rest of my life~~ the rest of the winter, this matte brown look with brownish black eyeliner would definitely make the cut.

Not only is it relatively speedy to do (say 15-20 minutes start to finish), it’s also easy because it doesn’t heavily rely on intense blending.

A banging’ brew of browns

So, what makes it relatively easy? Answer: The two brown shades — the golden brown on my lids (MAC Cork) and the warmer orangey brown in my crease (MAC Saddle) — are similar tones, which makes blending them together easier.

In fact, if you’re REALLY pressed for time, you can even skip the warm brown in the crease, and just wear the golden brown eyeshadow all over your lids.

That said, I do like the warm brown in the crease because, especially when I’m wearing a little bronzer, a warm brown in the crease ties everything together nicely.

Always adjustable

Another added bonus to this look is that it really does work with everything — bold lipsticks, nude lipsticks, no lipstick at all (for when I’m masked up). It’s quite flexible.

eyeshadow breakdown eye makeup goes with everything bright lip — With a bold lip color, MAC Powder Kiss Liquid Lipcolour in Escandalo. Long Live Lipstick Tee in Red Hibiscus.

eyeshadow breakdown eye makeup goes with everything nude lip — I feel good in this makeup! Long Live Lipstick Tee in Driftwood.

Base notes

Oh, and about that eyeshadow base — in the pics above, I’m purposefully wearing a beige cream eye primer with a beige powder eyeshadow buffed on top, which are lighter than my skin tone. I do this because, when I want browns to show up on my brown skin, I have to go lighter with my base. That makes them pop. I recommend going with a base that’s similar to your skin tone.

Sometimes, though, I skip the beige base entirely and just do a swish of golden brown eyeshadow all over my lids, like in this pic below:

duri when in rome — I’m wearing MAC Cork all over my lids without an eyeshadow base. The lipstick is MAC Relentlessly Red. Nail polish is Duri When in Rome. Nap Then Attack Tee.

See how the brown shadow adds a touch of depth to my crease? But not as much as it does when there’s a beige base underneath? I think it still works, though.

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

P.S. Today is inauguration day here in the US. Congratulations and good luck to President Biden and Vice President Harris!

A Little Chanel Les 4 Ombres Tissé Vendôme Eyeshadow Quad Love

January 7th, 2021 by Karen 17 Comments

chanel tisse vendome — Chanel Les 4 Ombres Multi-Effect Quadra Eyeshadow in Tissé Vendôme ($62)

Quick shout-out to a quad I’ve been loving lately! — Chanel Les 4 Ombres Tissé Vendôme.

I wear the two browns and the beige the most, and the lighter golden taupe-brown has a sheen finish. It’s fantastic for simple, elegant washes of color on the lids.

You can buff the darker brown (which also has a sheen finish) into the corners for depth, but I usually like to keep it simple and wear it as a liner, applied with either a wet or dry angled brush.

The satiny beige comes in handy for soft, subtle highlights on the brow bone and inner corner.

That coral shade is actually pretty handy too! Pair it with coral or peach blush or lipstick. I like to blend it onto the mobile part of my lid (the area that moves when you blink) to highlight that area and bring it out a bit more (helps my eyes look less hooded).

chanel tisse vendome swatch — For reference, I’m an NC4.

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

Chanel Eclosion Rouge Allure Velvet Extreme Lipstick and Boy de Chanel Brows: Bright Lips and a Beret

January 6th, 2021 by Karen 10 Comments

chanel Eclosion swatch jan 2021 — Bonne année!

I was going for a little French girl flair today, hence the beret. Admittedly, I’m also wearing it because I didn’t feel like dealing with all the stray, crazy baby hairs sticking out of my head at every angle this morning…so I just covered them up, hahaha!

I need more berets in my life.

chanel ecolsion swatch jan 2021 — I love this type of makeup look!

What, exactly, is French girl chic? To me, it’s easygoing yet elegant — makeup that isn’t heavy-handed or harsh, so no severe contouring or bladed brows or big spiderweb falsies.

I’m here for it!

Actually, I’m here for any makeup at all, LOL! I didn’t wear much over the holidays, and it feels good to get back into it.

Here I’m wearing bold but basic lips with just a single lipstick, softly defined eyes, a light cheek flush and a sheer base.

Most of the products I’m wearing are Chanel (French girl vibe and all), with a couple of the pieces from the new Chanel Spring-Summer 2021 collection.

chanel ecolosion primtemps — Today’s color palette

First is a bright, velvety matte reddish coral lipstick called Eclosion. It’s a lightweight, pigmented lipstick that feels so smooth and soft on my lips; however, despite being full coverage and matte, it does transfer a little, so if you’re going around kissing things, including humans, dogs and cats, you’ll leave lipstick marks all over the place.

The highlighter I’m wearing on my upper cheekbones is the lighter peach shade from the Fleur de Pritemps highlighter/blush duo. It has a lovely subtle, satin shine and works well with peach and coral blushes, which leads me to Malice blush… Good ol’ Chanel Malice! If you wear warm peachy coral blushes like MAC Melba well, you will LOVE this satiny blush. It’s part of the Chanel permanent collection and looks fantastic with most lip colors. I’ve been wearing and loving it for years.

Last, but certainly not least, the brows! I’m wearing a bolder brown than usual, thanks to Boy de Chanel in Deep Brown, my new favorite brow pencil. It’s from the Boy de Chanel sub-collection, which is marketed as makeup for dudes, but ya know…you won’t turn into a pumpkin or anything if you’re a lady and use it, LOL! I like it because the pencil isn’t too soft and creamy and therefore has a good wear time, and I also like how pigmented it is. Good stuff!

Makeup worn in this look

Eyes: Chanel Tisse Vendome Quad (light brown shade on lids, dark brown shades on lash lines), Chanel Espresso Waterproof Eyeliner, Bite Beauty Upswing Mascara, Chanel Boy de Chanel Eyebrow Pencil in Deep Brown
Cheeks: Chanel Malice (blush), Chanel Les Beiges in No. 50 (bronzer) and Chanel Fleurs de Printemps (highlighter)
Lips: Chanel Eclosion Rouge Allure Velvet Extreme Lipstick
Base: Charlotte Tilbury Flawless Filter in Tan set with Chanel Loose Powder in Translucent 3 (foundation and powder), Estee Lauder 24Hr Hydra Prep Concealer in Medium Deep Warm and Kevyn Aucoin Supernatural Concealer in EC06